The
final two volumes of Naxosís Cortot-Chopin 78s series, of
which this is the fifth and final one, offer substantial
riches and do so moreover in fine sounding transfers. Three
of the four Ballades were successfully accomplished on the
same day Ė 11 March 1929 Ė and only the G minor belongs to
another session made nearly three months later. These are
less well known than the later 1933 recordings and are thus
doubly deserving of our attention.

In the G minor he opens
with powerful and potently introspective passion. Subsequent
accelerandi may not convince those who favour a more metrically
rectitudinous approach but it sounds magnetically fervent
nevertheless. Cortotís expressive range is so wide, so deep
that he seems to encompass every tactile facet from the Ballades.
In the circumstances his fabled uneven technique, which lets
him down in minor ways in the G minor, is of utterly subservient
significance. Similarly with the F major we find a remarkable
balance between the dictates of lyrical expression and tensile
drama. This is a hugely complex piece and itís difficult
to fuse together its oppositional character. Cortotís solutions
always sound convincing and true both to the sinew and to
the mind behind it. In the Third Ballade we feel him drive
with ever devastating drama toward the heart of the matter Ė where
the volatile flexibility of pulse brings the central section
to truly volcanic life. As for the F minor it too is propelled
by Cortotís incendiary eloquence. It stands as a kind of
panorama of intensity and of feelings pushed almost to the
breaking point.

The Nocturnes span a wide
range of recording dates but demonstrate the same virtues.
There are six here with one remake. The essence of them in
Cortotís hands is an almost vocalised expression allied to
ravishing tone colours. True, his individuality can sometimes
elide into mannerism Ė desynchronised chording was no longer
fashionable and the metrical to-ings and fro-ings which he
displays could fairly be judged indulgent.† Still, how ravishing
is the F major [Op. 15 No. 1] in all its limpid beauty.

The Op.55 Nocturnes have
also been transferred on an APR disc devoted to Cortotís
post-war London sessions (APR
5571). Naxos has retained just
a slighter higher quotient of surface noise but otherwise
thereís little in it.

A triumphant end for the
Cortot-Chopin series then. Good restoration work allows us
to hear these performances in all their disputatious but
teeming glory.

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